Dundee is a hard-luck town—an industrial neighbor to historic Edinburgh and gritty-cool Glasgow that's been long overshadowed, despite being the fourth-largest city in Scotland. Just an hour and a half from Edinburgh by train, it could be an easy day trip—yet no one was going. Why would they? Born of a heritage in boat building, jute production, and gaming (Grand Theft Auto was developed in Dundee), the port city was industrial without the chic—a mix of gray buildings, an underdeveloped waterfront, and a less-than-thriving inner-city scene.

When the jute mills closed in the 1970s and ’80s due a decline in production, Dundee fell into a post-industrial hangover. It needed a new lease on life. So to rejuvenate the city’s waterfront area, Dundee City Council (DCC) devised a plan (that was financially backed by the Scottish government and their associated agencies) to devote $1.3 billion in private and public investment to the city’s rebirth. Part of that plan—a high-profile new landmark—would be both a welcome addition to the city’s skyline and a major tourist draw. As of this weekend, Dundee is the new home of the first-ever Victoria & Albert Museum outside of London.

It’s hard to miss the new V&A Dundee. At the entrance to the city, just over the Tay Road Bridge, the new ship-like design center seems to balance above the River Tay, propped up like a boat waiting to set sail. Designed by Japanese architect-of-the-moment Kengo Kuma (who's behind the Olympic stadium in Tokyo for the 2020 Summer Games), the $100 million museum is—like its sister branch in London, one of the world's largest (and most treasured) design museums—impressive as hell. Once the V&A opens its doors on September 15 after seven years in the works, it's expected to draw 350,000 visitors per year—which more than doubles the population of the entire city. The museum will have 200 permanent exhibits that showcase Scotland’s design history (largely taken from the V&A in London), along with its first major show, "Ocean Liners: Speed and Style," which takes a look at life on board the world’s greatest ocean liners, a nod to its boat-building past. Even after-hours, the gleaming angular building lights up like a Christmas tree. The expectation isn’t only that it will illuminate the waterfront area, but the entire city of Dundee.

“It didn’t just happen out of the blue. There’s been a steady investment over a long period of time” says Jennie Patterson, a proud Dundonian and regional expert who works closely with tourist organization Visit Scotland. “The perception of Dundee has changed. People are moving back and starting to talk about it in a positive way.”

The new V&A Dundee turns a spotlight on Scottish design, fashion, and architecture.

Hufton Crow/Courtesy V&A Dundee

Over the past few years, almost $100 million has been invested in the wider Dundee waterfront area, the third-largest regeneration project in the U.K.; the waterfront had the most potential, but was long overlooked. “This was often the case in big cities during the 20th century, rivers (or water areas) were cut off from the center of the town, blocked by big factories and warehouses,” says V&A architect Kengo Kuma. But new developments like the V&A and a slew of new boutique hotels (Malmaison, Sleeperz Hotel, and Hotel Indigo have opened up) as well as a new £38 million ($49.7m) railway station are re-making Dundee as a destination. “I hope the V&A Dundee will be a mediator between the town and the water so that the whole of Dundee will be revitalized,” says Kuma.

But still, the question on everyone’s lips: How the heck did Dundee get a V&A? “The city chose the V&A, not the other way around,” says Philip Long, director of V&A Dundee. “Dundee was not one of several places shortlisted as a potential venue for a new V&A, the process was much more organic. The very first conversations about V&A Dundee were the result of a close relationship between the museum and the University of Dundee.”

“The ambition was always to create something international,” adds Chris Wilson, communications manager of the V&A Dundee. In part, it’s to tell a story about Scotland’s design history—its architecture and fashion, and the impact everything from Scottish furniture to video games has had on the world—but also showcase international design. “The V&A was developed to give the city what it deserves. There was determination to rejuvenate the city and the V&A was born out of that.”